Droid Depot - TBS [P3] - Six Inch Figures (Exclusive)

A fastidious and worry-prone protocol droid, C-3PO lonhs for more peaceful times, but his continued service to the Resistance keeps him in the front lines of galactic conflict.

R2-D2 is a plucky and loyal Astromech droid that aids the Resistance in their conflict against the First Order and takes part in many of the momentous events in the galaxy.

A skittish but loyal astromech, BB-8 accompanied Poe Dameron on many missions for the Resistance, helping keep his X-wing in working order.

RX-24, more commonly known as Rex, has given up the pilot's life and has reimagined himself as DJ R3X. Behind his DJ table he spins and plays ubeat music as he watches over the crowd of the cantina.

Meh. The Black Series [Phase III] Droid Depot Galaxy’s Edge exclusive doesn’t feel that much different from a 3.75” STAR TOURS version released years ago, with a couple of changes, of course. Droid Depot brings together three of the Star Wars saga’s most-popular droids and then adds a “new” character, although not technically new at all, and packages them together to create a 6” version of the multipacks received years ago before the Disney takeover. Droids are always huge sellers in any toy line, so it was smart of Hasbro and Disney to compile a set of Star Wars characters that fit into this identity. BB-8, R2-D2, C-3PO and “new” character DJ R3X are all part of this multipack. The latter is a transitioned version of RX-24 “REX” from the original STAR TOURS attraction and toy line. Per the bio on the packaging, this droid gave up piloting and has moved on to entertainment and serves as a DJ in the local cantina in Galaxy’s Edge (or Batuu). For us, this exclusive is a bit boring (and expensive for the contents inside). But undoubtedly there will be new Star Wars fans excited to pick up the droids in all one place, and that might save this multipack from certain doom by collectors unwilling to purchase it for all of its repetition.

BB-8 is a repaint of the figure from 2015’s TBS [P3] Rey (Jakku) & BB-8 (04) two-pack. This time Hasbro gave the figure a little more deco and battle-damage. But other than that the figure received no other enhancements. The figure only comes with two points of articulation, and still possesses a wonky balance and it’s difficult to stand BB-8 upright without any leaning. The 3.75” versions of the droid function much better this way. Hasbro, intent on releasing and re-releasing the 6” astromechs in an embarrassingly small scale, once again adds the same old R2-D2 into the line with a different paint job. They excluded all of the dome attachments this time and instead only added the dome panels and leg panels, so the figure is complete. The battle-damage on R2-D2 looks fantastic, but it’s easy to overlook it because you’ll be annoyed by his small stature. C-3PO, while not perfect but still looking decent, is a slight repaint of the Walgreen exclusive figure. (We are still perplexed how the “normal” version of C-3PO was a retailer exclusive. (You’d have to ask if Hasbro knows their customer base at all.) It’s nice to see this figure again. He comes with a decent likeness and good articulation. And he’s a wise addition to this multipack.

So. What about DJ R3X? Was there a need to reinvent the “Pee-wee Herman” character to keep him distant from the STAR TOURS attraction. We’d be lying if we said we weren’t a tad miffed that they didn’t keep this character pure to its origins. Why must everything be reinvented in Disney Star Wars? Why can’t characters appear as cameos, unchanged, and add their original character’s stardust to the new Entertainment? They can evolve the character’s story, fine. If there aren’t anymore Starspeeder 1000s in Galaxy’s Edge, that’s fine. But why must RX-24 be completely repainted, dumbed-down from pilot to “DJ” status and give him a bio that he makes his own decisions about the paths he takes in life? He’s a droid and follows commands (unless he got new programming too). So, we can’t get behind the 6” figure all that much because we’re disappointed to see all the changes made to the classic droid. Instead of a flip-up visor, DJ R3X now has an articulated headset on (so he can “spin” as well as possible. He has an orange, cream, and gray color scheme, and is decorated beautifully. The figure also comes with an impressive amount of articulation, and we would have loved to see the 2002 POTJ RX-24 “REX” STAR TOURS figure get the same treatment. Maybe that will happen one day.